Colony's Real World Influences

COLONY executive producers Carlton Cuse (Lost) and Ryan Condal (The Strain) looked to history as well as current international events to create the show. See if you can catch all of COLONY'S nods to real world influences.

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It's no secret that the best sci-fi shows draw their influences from real world topics. Colony is no exception. In fact, executive producers Carlton Cuse (Lost) and Ryan Condal (The Strain) looked to history as well as current international events to create the show, which they consider to be an espionage thriller with a sci-fi backdrop.

Carlton Cuse and Ryan Condal were really inspired by Nazi-occupied Paris during World War II.

The Occupation

People went on with their normal lives, even with Nazi officers patrolling the city. This allowed them to come up with a "collaborate or resist" theme that runs through the whole series of Colony.

City Patrol

The streets of occupied Los Angeles have red flags hanging in every public space. The flags are reminiscent of Nazi-occupied cities, like Paris, during World War II.

Occupied Territory

Cuse and Condal also looked to more modern events, like the U.S. helping in the rebuilding of Afghanistan and Iraq. You'll be able to see this mirrored in Colony through the Proxy Government.

Rebuilding a Nation

They also included a Green Zone, which was inspired by the Green Zone that was set up in Baghdad after the invasion.

Green Zone

The idea of colonization is totally central to human history. Almost every country has either been a colony, or a colonizer, so these are themes that anyone will be able to understand. Cuse and Condal were looking for a contemporary way to share these stories, which is what inspired Colony.

Propaganda

The show takes place in Los Angeles in the very near future, so you'll see lots of familiar scenic images, but there'll be one major difference.

Los Angeles: Then and Now

Colony's Real World Influences

It's no secret that the best sci-fi shows draw their influences from real world topics. Colony is no exception. In fact, executive producers Carlton Cuse (Lost) and Ryan Condal (The Strain) looked to history as well as current international events to create the show, which they consider to be an espionage thriller with a sci-fi backdrop.